While their effectiveness is clear, benzodiazepines do create various side effects. Taking benzos produces the advertised side effects, such as muscle relaxation, sedation and reduced anxiety. However, benzodiazepines like lorazepam also come with a host of unpleasant effects ranging from mild to severe depending on the dosage and duration of treatment, such as:

• Drowsiness and tiredness
• Dizziness
• Loss of orientation
• Confusion
• Weakness
• Diarrhea
• Dry mouth
• Headache
• Restlessness
• Sleep disturbance
• Constipation
• Frequent and difficult urination
• Blurred vision
• Reduced libido
• Irritability or aggression
• Feelings of depression

Despite the laundry list of potential side effects, benzodiazepines are still ripe for abuse when people are unaware of the risks of these medications. Many people who misuse benzos also have co-occurring addictions. Many benzodiazepine deaths involve other substances, such as opioids or alcohol, with opioids being co-involved in over 80% of benzo-related deaths.

Benzodiazepines act as a sedative, slowing down your body’s functions. This is what makes Benzos highly effective for both sleep problems and anxiety. Part of the danger with this class of drug, however, is that it works directly on the brain, changing how it functions to achieve the desired calming effects.

Our brains contain dozens of different neurotransmitters, each responsible for communicating messages between brain cells. When you feel anxious, your brain has become overactive or excited. Tranquilizing neurotransmitters then slow down brain activity — specifically gamma-aminobutyric acid or GABA.

Every benzo works by enhancing the effect of the neurotransmitter GABA. Benzodiazepines increase activity in the brain at the sites of receptors for this neurotransmitter. This stops neurons from operating at their full capacity, slowing the brain and the nervous system and resulting in calm and relaxation. GABA reduces activity specifically in the areas of the brain responsible for:

• Memory
• Emotions
• Rational thought
• Essential functions, such as breathing

While Benzodiazepines can be effective in the short term, after a few months of use, your brain can adjust to their effects, causing them to stop working or requiring higher doses to feel the same effects.

While benzodiazepines are safer than other sedatives and tranquilizers for short-term use, people can and do experience benzodiazepine use disorder for several different reasons.

1. Increased tolerance: Over time, the brain develops a tolerance to the drug, and the affected GABA neurons become underactive. When this happens, taking the drug away suddenly can launch a person headlong into withdrawal.
2. Shorter-acting benzos: There are two broad categories of benzodiazepines: shorter-acting and longer-acting. The longer a drug is active, the longer it takes to eliminate from your system and the longer it takes to develop withdrawal symptoms. If someone takes longer-acting benzodiazepines like Librium, it usually takes around a month or two to develop the reaction. Shorter-acting drugs like Xanax and Tranxene take a shorter time to achieve the same result, with dependence becoming established in as few as seven days of use.
3. Misuse: Misuse of benzodiazepines is common and rising. More 12% of adults in the U.S. have used benzodiazepines in the past year, and misuse of a prescription constituted more than 2% of that use. 
4. Long-term use: Older people prescribed benzos have a troubling relationship with them as well. About a quarter of older adults who take these medications go on to long-term use. For every 10 days added to a benzodiazepine prescription, the risk of long-term use almost doubles for the following year.

People who begin abusing benzodiazepine medications often do so because they find the drug has euphoric effects. Those who become dependent on benzos through a prescription may not experience the high, but those who begin taking the drug recreationally do so because they perceive the euphoria to be worth the risk.

Often, neither group of people understands the risks associated with taking benzodiazepines over the long term. Some of the chronic issues that can arise when taking benzos include:

• Memory loss
• Amnesia
• Confused thoughts
• Fatigue and lethargy
• Sleepiness and drowsiness
• Difficulty sleeping and insomnia
• Disturbing dreams or nightmares
• Personality change
• Altered or irrational emotional response
• Depression and anxiety
• Irritability and aggression
• Paranoia
• Weakness and diminished motor skills

Benzodiazepines can cause severe changes that make a person almost unrecognizable, even to themselves. Those changes may become permanent, as benzos cause associated brain damage that leads to an increased risk of developing dementia. A 2014 study reported people who used benzodiazepines for more than six months had an 84% increase in their chances of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

Benzodiazepines are notoriously difficult to withdraw from. Unlike many other drugs, some of the withdrawal symptoms can be deadly, making it dangerous to quit cold turkey. The most dangerous symptom to avoid is seizures, which can cause permanent brain damage or death. During detox, users must also address these other extremely unpleasant symptoms:

• Anxiety and panic attacks
• Irritability and irrational anger
• Insomnia
• Sweating
• Nausea and dry retching
• Headaches
• Aching muscles
• Muscle stiffness and cramps
• Inability to concentrate
• Sensory distortions
• Heart palpitations
• Tremors
• Psychosis
• Hallucinations

Due to the severity of withdrawal symptoms and the potential for seizures to occur, the only safe way to rid your body of benzodiazepines is to undergo medical detoxification.

Medical detox is the process of eliminating substances from your body with the assistance of medical professionals. A physician will evaluate the severity of your substance abuse by gathering your history and administering a drug test. They use this information to create a detoxification plan that generally includes monitoring your vital signs, tapering you off the drug and prescribing medications to reduce the risk of seizures and minimize your discomfort from withdrawal symptoms.

Detoxing from benzodiazepines is a crucial first step to recovery due to the severity of withdrawal symptoms. Without medical supervision, attempting to withdraw from benzo use will be both painful and dangerous. Diamond House Detox offers a benzodiazepine taper program in CA in a safe, holistic environment.

Benzodiazepine withdrawal primarily occurs in three phases. The first phase is early withdrawal, which typically starts within a few hours to a few days of stopping the medication and can last several days. During the early withdrawal phase, individuals report a recurrence of symptoms the benzos worked to suppress, like anxiety and insomnia, as their brain tries to readjust to functioning without drugs. The tapering process can aid in reducing the rebound effect.

After a few days of not taking benzodiazepines, an individual may enter the acute withdrawal phase, lasting between two weeks and several months. This phase makes up the bulk of withdrawal and can include symptoms such as anxiety, panic or short-term memory impairment. During the treatment process, your doctor may recommend specific medications to help reduce more severe symptoms. It is also wise to enter therapy and support groups to help defuse the more complicated emotions that come with overcoming addiction.

While it is rare, there is a chance an individual may move into the third stage of protracted withdrawal syndrome. This recovery phase can last months to years after someone stops taking benzos and can result in symptoms like tingling in the arms and legs or cognitive deficits. Throughout detox, individuals will have access to mental health services and support to manage protracted withdrawal symptoms.

While there is no set timeline for withdrawing from benzo abuse, getting help from medical and mental health professionals can greatly help reduce the symptoms’ intensity and duration. Medical detox can aid in the safe removal of benzos from the body, and taking advantage of therapy and family services can promote a smooth recovery.

Removing benzos from your system is just the first step to recovery. Addiction is not just physical. It has a vast array of psychological components that can complicate recovery. If you don’t address the issues that led you to abuse benzodiazepines in the first place, your risk of relapsing is high. The following forms of addiction therapy can help bring your recovery into sharper focus.

• Art therapy: Talk therapy is a valuable tool in unraveling the threads of addiction, but art therapy helps uncover feelings about your sustance use disorder that are hard to talk about or access in regular therapy.
• Cognitive behavioral therapy: CBT is a specialized type of talk therapy designed to help you make permanent changes to addictive behaviors and thought patterns.
• Dual diagnosis: In many cases, addiction comes paired with another mental illness. In recognizing this, we can better tailor your treatment to fit you uniquely and treat your addiction at its root.

Addiction treatment programs use both medical detox and one or more types of therapy to treat the whole person. It’s essential to maintain therapy support for as long as possible after you complete your treatment program. While you may achieve stability in treatment, the sheer unpredictability of life can throw you off your track to permanent sobriety if you don’t have the therapy resources to help deal with it.

Staying sober requires a genuine commitment to recovery and an arsenal of tools to help maintain that commitment. Willpower is invaluable throughout the process, but you may sometimes find you need some assistance replenishing your emotional resources.

Support groups are a helpful source of emotional support as well as strategies for making recovery work. Building relationships with people who have been in your shoes is a smart way to build a supportive network for yourself and create a long-term foundation for recovery.

After completing your treatment program, you’ll probably be brimming with excitement and have the motivational momentum to dive into your newly sober life. However, staying sober requires a genuine commitment to recovery and an arsenal of tools to help maintain that commitment. Willpower is invaluable throughout the process, but you may sometimes find you need some help replenishing your emotional resources.

Try some of these tips to stay on the right track:

• Don’t get overconfident: You may feel so sure of your new sobriety that you go right back to the old habits and patterns that led to addiction in the first place.
• Create a support network: Having a trusted circle of family and friends that can help when you’re struggling with sobriety is key to creating a safety net for tougher times.
• Join a support group: Support groups are a helpful source of emotional support as well as strategies for making recovery work. Building relationships with people who have been in your shoes through group therapy is a smart way to build a supportive network for yourself and create a long-term foundation for recovery.
• Avoid enablers: While you’re building up a support network, you must also do the hard work of removing enablers from your inner circle. Whether it’s a friend or family member that facilitated your addiction before, you have to set clear boundaries.
• Don’t self-isolate: You don’t need to be a social butterfly to succeed in recovery, but avoiding isolation and committing to a minimum amount of social interaction can keep you engaged and not thinking about using again.
• Find your passion: Without benzodiazepines in your life, you’re going to have a lot more time on your hands. Doing something you love will help you find a feeling of purpose.
• Take an active role in your health: Benzos are rough on the body, and you’ll be amazed by how much healthier you feel when you eat well, sleep enough and get some regular exercise.
• Forgive yourself: You may have a host of regrets for things you did while using benzos, but stewing in them will only make things worse. Focus your energy on being the best person you can be going forward.

The main theme behind continued sobriety is to accept change. Some of it, like cutting out friends you used to use with, can be difficult and painful. Other parts of change can be freeing and exciting, like when you find a hobby or cause to devote your time to. Either way, the change is necessary and positive in the long run. With appropriate support and resources, you’ll be able to keep your sobriety going strong.